The Legacy of a Father
by LostThyme
Summary: The King of Attolia finds himself alone, supporting his people as war with the Medes is looming on the horizon. He is determined to start the war on his own terms, but his ability to do things as he'd like to is limited by his increased duties as king.
1. Chapter 1

"If I could pass on my title as your Thief to an Eddisian, I would." The King of Attolia leaned out over the crenellations of the wall around his palace. It was a rare moment that he could speak with such candor to the Queen of Eddis, his cousin and political ally. It had taken a good deal of wheedling on the Attolis's part to shed his numerous attendants, but they had acquiesced if the he agreed to keep guards with him. They were perched along the wall, just out of hearing. "But as that would require my death," the King continued, "I must hold on to it for some time."

Eddis, not for the first time in her life, wanted to snatch the back of his elaborately embroidered jacket and drag him away from the open air. "If you keep dangling out over the ground like that, I may have my Thief back sooner than you think." She was visiting Attolia on the matter of the war that was looming over their heads. Ever since the three nations-Attolia, Eddis, and Sounis-were united, Eddis had spent a lot of time bouncing back and forth between the three courts.

"There was a time when I would have been standing on top of the wall. You should be thanking me." Regardless, Attolis leaned back obligingly. "Who would you give that honorable title to after my untimely demise at the foot of my own walls? Surely not Actaeon." Actaeon was one of Eddis's younger cousins on her mother's side of the family. The boy was a brutish lad of fourteen, older than Attolis had been as Eddis's thief, but far more likely to trip over his own feet and meet the defenestrated fate of many Queen's Thieves.

"You are so cruel to poor little Actaeon."

"I heard he nearly spitted himself on his own sword when my father tried to teach him fencing."

Attolis's father was Eddis's esteemed Minister of War. Attolis himself had proven to be an adept swordsman under his father's tutelage, but had sworn off the life of a soldier early on. Eddis briefly reflected that his life would have certainly taken a different path if he had joined the fighting. He would probably be dead at the hands of the same men who protected him now. "Swordsmanship isn't a requirement for my Thief, Eugenides. And I wouldn't pick him. One of your descendants will do nicely."

"One of my descendants?" Attolis raised an eyebrow. "Do you plan on waiting around and stealing one of my nieces or nephews? Or perhaps a rebellious grandchild?"

"One of your children would work nicely."

"So you would stoop to robbing the royal cradle. How low of you. No doubt you have your eye on an Attolian heir."

"It's not my fault you got the role of Thief tied up in Attolian politics."

Attolis craned back out over the edge of the wall. "And who is to say that I will have children? Perhaps I will die old and senile, and leave the throne to Actaeon." Eddis bit back a laughing defense of Actaeon as an entourage of guards approached, led by the Queen of Attolia herself. The king smiled weakly at his wife's grave expression. "It appears I am in trouble again. Excuse me."

"Excuse us, Eddis," Attolia said stiffly. "I must speak to the king. He usually climbs the walls on his own and I did not expect company."

"Of course." Eddis retreated back a safe distance. The guards did likewise.

She watched her cousin as he listened to his wife. She was speaking under her breath, her mouth pinched and her eyes cast on the ground near his feet. They certainly were an odd pair, and it had taken quite a bit to convince the Attolian court that they did indeed love each other. Eddis could tell just by the way his eyes would meet hers that their emotion was indeed devotion, but she had known Eugenides far longer than the Attolian court had.

The King by now was staring straight forward, blankly. This was, of course, at the Queen's ear. His Eddisian heritage never did let him catch up to his wife's height. Eddis had only seen the King at a loss for words a handful of times in his life, and it seemed he was at a loss for words now. Just as Eddis was considering walking over to rescue him, he gathered himself enough to murmur a reply to which the Queen gave a brief nod.

The King returned to Eddis as if it was an afterthought. He leaned back over the wall bemusedly, even farther than before until nearly his entire upper body was shoved out into the upper air.

"Are you alright, Your Majesty?" Eddis formally addressed the back of the King's head after noting that the guards had moved into earshot.

After a moment, the King responded. Eddis could see his mouth work slightly as he uncharacteristically fumbled for words. "It seems my grand plans for Actaeon are out of the question now," he said at last, studying the ground below. "I am to have an heir, after all."

"She chose a strange moment to inform you," Eddis said lightly.

The King still appeared lost in thought. "She assumed I would be alone up here," he said distractedly, echoing the Queen's words.

"And this is something that should be kept secret?" Eddisian folded her arms, leaning against the wall.

"No, she wanted to know if we should announce it today or tomorrow. I wasn't left much choice in the matter."

Attolis shifted subtly away from the prying ears of the guards, who no doubt would spread the news around the palace long before an official announcement was made. "What am I to do?" He said in a horrified tone. "The Queen isn't expected to make public appearances as she prepares to have a child. I'll have to show up in public by myself."

His dismay reminded Eddis of the time he had realized that being King meant appearing before people and being cordial. His selective inability to think things through never failed. She laughed, patting him on the back. "May I be the first to congratulate you, Eugenides? I'm sure you'll do just fine."

As she was called away by a message from Sounis, Eddis cast a look back at the king. The concern on his face did not seem to be completely from distress of parading alone in front of barons and courtiers, and that worried her. If a thought was enough to take the words away from Eugenides, it would be a grave thought indeed.


	2. Chapter 2

The meeting room in Attolia was light and airy, glowing with the late morning sun shining in from the numerous windows and the _oculus _above, a round hole in the ceiling that let in direct light that slanted down through the room to hit above the far doorway. It was a far cry from the room where the ministers and queen would gather in back in Eddis. That was a mountainous room, full of crackling braziers, heavy chairs, wooden tables, and maps papering every surface. This was a clean place, where the maps were neatly stored away and only to be brought out when needed.

Eugenides was not as comfortable here as he was back in the cluttered organization of his homeland, surrounded by people who were all related to him one way or another and willing to sacrifice themselves if his ideas didn't seem too ridiculous. But, as he fingered the back of the embroidery of one of the two largest and central chairs, it was probably due more to where he was sitting, strange as it may seem. Back in Eddis, he would have been tucked away in a dark corner somewhere, only offering an idea if he already had set it in motion. Here, he was expected to sit front and center, offering input on everything, every fruitless idea. He much preferred developing his own ideas in silence until the right moment. As it was, he had already coldly sent his ministers scurrying out of the room with a well-placed threat a few days earlier.

If not for the queen, the king probably would have thrown himself off of the walls from sheer terror. He was not made for the limelight. But then again, if not for the queen, he wouldn't have ended up king. He had only wanted to marry her, the throne one of his panicked afterthoughts. It might have been what endeared him to her so much in those first few moments. He had been the first suitor who hadn't been after the crown.

Eddis and Sounis, his neighboring monarchs and friends, entered the room arm-in-arm. Eddis was chuckling quietly, presumably at something Sounis had said the moment before. The sight of them brought a slight smile to the king's face. They had plans to be married soon, once all of the fine details of bringing their two countries together were settled. Eugenides shifted slightly but didn't turn as Attolia appeared at his side, brushing his hand with hers. As soon as the other two reached the long table at the far end of the room they all sat.

"I had heard that you arrived this morning," Attolia said cordially, addressing the king of Sounis. "I hope you are not too tired after your journey."

"It is not too far from my country to yours," Sounis replied, "and my welcome in Eddis was quite warm. It is amazing how much the reception has changed since the days of my uncle." He glanced over at Eddis and a slight blush crept into his face. "I must congratulate you two. "Helen-" he paused. "Eddis told me the good news this morning. The court is already abuzz after your announcement last night."

"Thank you." Attolia smiled slightly, a slight flush creeping into her face as well. "It is well that we have an heir before we find ourselves... too old and leaving the throne to a stranger." Eugenides gave a short snort. He was barely twenty and Attolia was just a few years older. Old age, indeed. "I believe the king has already chosen a name."

Eddis tilted her head in surprise. "It isn't Actaeon, is it?"

The king ducked his head when the queen turned to face him. "Is there some strange Eddisian meaning behind that name that I should be aware of? An old way of saying goat-foot?"

"In his mind, it might as well be," Eddis answered promptly, trying to hide her own smile. "It's the name of my much maligned cousin."

"I see. I will have to strike that name from the list."

Remembering something, Eddis let the smile slip away and turned back to her cousin. "Have you spoken with your father yet? I believe he is getting angry that you're excluding him from these meetings."

"He's your minister of war, not mine." The king folded his arms sullenly. "And I do invite him to meetings. Just not the important ones."

"The king grew tired of his ministers a few days ago and ordered them away." The Queen's expression was bland. "I'm sure he will let them come back once the mood passes."

It wasn't like Attolia to just acquiesce to something like that. Either the king's fit had really been disastrous or she was still meeting with the neglected ministers in secret. It was probably both, Eddis decided silently.

"We lost a fleet of merchant vessels last week to pirates," Sounis broke in during the silence. "We believe-that is, Eddis and I- that it was the Medes. We've used a similar tactic against them before and it's the only way I can explain the dramatic increase in piracy."

"How many ships?" Attolia was still ignoring the king, who had fallen tersely quiet after mention of his father.

"Enough that my shipping lanes are in an uproar. I don't know a definite number. We're losing them daily."

"Why would the Medes risk themselves like this? They seem rather sure of themselves," Eugenides said thoughtfully, staring Attolia's hands on the table.

"Perhaps they are planning something," said Attolia, sliding her hands down into her lap. Eugenides looked up.

"Sounis could retaliate, but I fear that might be like kicking a hornet's nest," said Eddis. "And even with Eddis's aid, we can't fight off the Medes. We'll need Attolians."

"We intend to help as best we can," said Attolia. "I'm sure the king is already creating multiple dangerous plans to stop the piracy, destroy the Medes, and set himself up as their emperor."

They all chuckled at the thought, and their planning turning to more serious ideas. 

The four deliberated for several more hours before the king excused himself quietly. He wandered the halls, trailing attendants behind him. "Would you like some food? It's well past noon, Your Majesty." Eugenides waved the question off and continued walking. His attendants pinched back smiles as they watched him. It looked like he was trying to avoid encountering other people and he would dart into rooms whenever someone came into sight. Their presence gave him away easily, but they had decided a long time ago to just humor the Eddisian's eccentricities. They found themselves ducking through one door, then hurrying after the king through another to find themselves blinking in the daylight. They were on one of the upper terraces of the palace. Before they could utter a word, the king had swooped up a wall unceremoniously onto the roof.

"Go get the Queen," said the head attendant. 

"Excuse me, My Queen." One of the king's attendants shuffled meekly into the room where the papers and maps had been cleared to make room for a light meal. The man crossed the room nervously and bent to say something in the Queen's ear.

When the man straightened up and backed away, the Queen rose from her chair and backed away. "Please, enjoy the meal. I must go fetch the king. He appears to be climbing things again." She pursed her lips delicately, as if talking of a misbehaving child.

As she disappeared after the attendant, Eddis and Sounis turned to each other. "I'm worried about Gen," Sounis said worriedly.

"You, too?" 

"Your attendant informed me that you were climbing the roof." The bottoms of the king's boots were the only part of him Attolia could see as she stood below him on the terrace, surrounded by anxious attendants. "They normally wouldn't be so concerned, I was told, but your head attendant has recently heard the story of your mother's death." The mentioned head attendant shifted nervously.

"I'm not trying to join my dear mother," the king said, drawing up his feet over the ledge. "Besides, she fell out of a window."

"After being on the roof."

"I think more clearly up here." A hand appeared, waving her up. "Join me."

"I prefer it where I am."

"The bricks make a perfect ladder a few feet to your right."

Sighing, Attolia turned to the growing crowd. "Go fetch His Majesty a ladder." Most of them disappeared into the palace, and the rest of them backed away as they realized that the Queen intended to climb the wall. As she hitched her skirts up (the guards turned away, embarrassed) and planted a foot on the wall, she called up to Eugenides. "You're really making a fool of yourself."

"Careful..." A hand extended down as Attolia pulled herself up the brick wall, her muscles aching. Her fingers scraped uncomfortably against the rough surface, and she was relieved when his hand grasped her arm and pulled her to the top. She fell delicately onto the tiled surface beside him, settling her skirt around her.

"I don't see why you climb up to places like this. It's rather impractical, don't you think?"

"The view is nice," Eugenides replied vaguely.

Attolia looked out at the surroundings. She got a better view of the palace's grounds from her own rooms, and this roof looked out over the courtyard where her guardsmen practiced. She could see Eddis's Minister of War far below, and she realized just why he was on the roof. "You're hiding." Not an accusation, just a statement of fact.

"My father," he confirmed gravely.

Attolia raised an eyebrow. "Why would you hide from him?"

"My father..." Somewhere below, their remaining attendants were nervously gathering at the foot of the wall, hoping they wouldn't have to catch a king or queen. "...as Eddis's Minister of War... his opinions worry me. I've never cared much for my father's approval, but now I find it means more to me that any of the opinions of these useless barons you keep here. He most likely thinks I'm a lousy king."

Putting a hand over his, Attolia smiled demurely. "I doubt he thinks that. Surely he trusts my opinion of his son, and I wouldn't have picked him if I thought he would make a lousy king." This only brought a frown to his face. "I think you should stop ignoring _our_ barons and advisors. I've worked hard to keep them in line, it would be unwise of you to alienate them. And go talk to your father. He's already tried to strangle you once."

"And stop whining?"

"Yes, I think you should stop whining."

"I'll consider it." His expression grew contemplative.

"What?"

"How are you going to get down from here?" A slight smile crept into his face as he eyed the people below. "I could sling you over my shoulders and carry you down for your guards' benefit."

"I've already sent for a ladder. Carrying me down would no doubt send my guards into a frenzy for your blood. And I much prefer you when your skin is on your body, not flayed off."

"Ladders aren't nearly as adventurous," Attolia heard him mutter petulantly as the ladder was propped up against the edge of the roof and they began to descend. 

When they returned to the room where they left Eddis and Sounis, they instead found the Eddisian Minister of War. He was pacing like a caged bear, out of place in that airy room.

"You tricked me." Eugenides didn't try to escape, but he slumped his shoulders.

"Helen told me you would be coming here," his father said, stopping his pacing. "Excuse us, Your Majesty. I must speak to my son, alone."

"Of course." Attolia left, leaving Eugenides alone with his father.

"You're being a blasted idiot," the Minister of War prefaced. "None of your barons will give you honest advice now that you've scared them off."

"Their honest advice was useless. I believe the Baron Seoirse suggested last time that we should just surrender to the Medes and happily pay them tribute."

"I thought it was your specialty to turn stupid plans into plans that worked. Isn't that how you made it this far? These barons should be a goldmine of ideas for you."

"They want me to openly attack! What use is that? I'm no warmonger."

"But your wife is. If you can't lead these people who trust you, I'm sure _she _can."

Outside, Attolia could hear the sound of shouting. Not wanting to look like she was skulking around her own palace, she closed the doors at the end of the hall to stop the noise from carrying and left.

When the king reappeared that night in her private rooms, he still had a dark cloud in his eyes. "I knew I had a good reason to hide from him," he said sitting at the foot of the bed and leaning against the carved post. "He's still angry with me that I'm not a soldier."

"Perhaps you could prove him wrong?" Attolia was standing in front of a mirror, pulling the pins out of her hair, one by one.

"That's not how I do things."

"That's not how a _Thief_ does things," Attolia corrected. "But, if I'm not mistaken, that's how a _king_ usually does things."

Eugenides stared at her, but gave no reply.


	3. Chapter 3

A month went by and Attolia gradually disappeared from the public eye. The king grew more and more taciturn as he became the sole, albeit rather uninspiring monarch. His responses at dinners and ceremonies became so brief that he reduced long customary speeches to a few choice words and a nod of the head. The change in his normally nonchalant manner was mostly apparent only to those closest to him, and they could only hope that the hours he was now spending cloistered away in the palace library were spent planning some spectacular move against the Medes as tensions escalated.

Regardless, the people of the Attolian court could feel the mounting tension. Discussion about the impending war openly mentioned only by the bravest of barons, and the conversations at dinners had dwindled away to the safer topics of the harvest and the latest trends in fashion on the continent.

"Have you heard how the ladies are wearing their hair these days?" one Attolian baroness asked another in conspiring tones across the table. Her husband beside her looked at his food with an expression of studied indifference. "Completely down! And to think they would consider _us_the uncivilized people!" Her companion scoffed delicately at the notion, patting her lips nervously with a handkerchief.

Eddis was watching the king down the long table as this chatter filtered through her mind. It was her last night in Attolia before returning home. Sounis had been called home weeks earlier to rally his panicking barons. The dinner was her last one in Attolia, so that gave it greater importance. All of the barons, even the minor ones, were present, but the king was ignoring those around him and the food in front of him. Eddis kept shooting looks at her Minister of War, who was sitting a few places nearer to Eugenides. _Do something_, she tried to say silently, flicking her eyes to his son. The Minister looked down into his plate after catching her eye for the briefest moment.

One of Attolia's courtiers, however, must have inadvertently picked up her message. "How is Her Majesty, the Queen?" he said politely. Yes, perhaps that was the cause of his withdrawn look. If anything was wrong with Attolia, Eddis imagined his expression would be very similar to the one he had been wearing.

"She is well," was the equally polite answer, accompanied with a nod.

"The child will be born in early winter, will he not?"

"Most likely." Nod.

Eddis wanted to fling food down the table at him. She sat forward in her chair to loudly make some remark or another to the king, but found someone else had moved faster than she.

"Your Majesty." The Minister of War was looking pointedly at the king. Eddis gave a small sigh of relief and sat back in her chair. "What is your plan to deal with the Medes? Is it to be war?"

A heavy silence fell over the people nearest to them who caught the words, and whispers quickly passed the questions around the hall.

Eddis was horrorstruck. She had wanted the minister to force Eugenides out of his quiet mood, but not like that! She had only wanted a humorous question, or a teasing jibe, not a direct question about war! She glanced at the frozen barons and courtiers around her. This was going to get messy.

To her surprise, Eugenides only arched his eyebrow and stared coolly over his plate in what appeared to be his best imitation of the queen. "I would prefer to avoid war if possible, Minister," he replied flatly. Everyone around was listening intently. "I believe that we can only succeed with the aid of Eddis and Sounis, if it does come to that. If there is to be war, I'm afraid your country will be involved." Something about his mask-like expression chilled Eddis to the bone. She had accounted for Eugenides' wild nature wearing off of the queen, but she hadn't considered that the queen's icy hold on her court might influence him.

The tone of his voice had offered no opening for remark, but the minister kept pressing. "Is not war the only option left? We cannot hide forever." The last comment was a subtle barbed jab at the king's secluded hours, but the king's face didn't so much as twitch.

"I believe you overstep yourself, Minister. Not even kings and queens know what the future has in store, try as we might to predict it." The king was still calm, but Eddis could see his hand shaking. He clenched it into a tight fist, and the shaking stopped.

"Forgive me, Your Majesty," the Minister said lightly, contrasting with his son's almost pained tone. "I was just curious."

The table was silent for a few more minutes until the braver of them began talking of the weather.

When Eddis met with her minister later, she couldn't decide if she should reprimand him or congratulate him. She settled on sitting and quirking a slight smile. "You couldn't have picked a different topic?"

The Minister was impassive. "Everyone there needed to hear that he really has been thinking about the Medes. He's been hiding away so often lately they were getting anxious."

"Has he yelled at you yet?"

"Not yet. He understands well what I did, even if he doesn't care what his court thinks."

"He'll still yell at you."

"I know." The minister folded his arms stubbornly.

"Do you know what he's planning?"

"Only what you've told me of your meetings. Your Majesty..." he trailed off, about to broach a topic he knew the queen wouldn't be very receptive to. "I think I should stay here."

"Worried about Gen?" Eddis leaned forward on her elbows.

"I'm more worried about the King of Attolia. I don't believe he understands the delicacy of the situation he's treading on."

"I don't think you're giving Gen enough credit. Besides, if I leave you here I'll be on my own."

"You've been Queen much longer." The Minister bowed his head. "Forgive me, but I don't think you need me."

Eddis sighed and passed a hand over her forehead. "Perhaps you're right. He has been worrying me more than usual." It would be tricky to make it so her Minister of War could stay without raising suspicious comments. There seemed to her to be only one option, but it meant giving up another part of her most loyal subjects. She sighed. "First I lose my Thief to Attolia, now I lose you. If I allow you to stay, you'll have to stay as an ambassador."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

"Don't thank me yet. I'll have to replace you. You would be giving up your role as my Minister, you understand?"

"Of course." The now ex-Minister of War, Gelasius, only paused for the briefest of seconds.

It had all been so easy, losing her Minister like that. Eddis wondered if she would be able to replace him. If her uncle had asked to stay behind for any other reason she would never had agreed to it. "I may be breaking all tradition, changing your title like this and springing you into the Attolian court, Gelasius. Gen won't be happy."

"You what?" Eugenides was staring at her incredulously as Eddis told him of her newly appointed ambassador.

"I don't know why I've not done this before. Finally, I'll have an ambassador that you can't run off or beat into submission." She feigned humor, still smarting slightly over the loss of her Minister.

"What are you going to do to Ornon?"

"Bring him home with me, most likely. He'll be happy to get away from you."

Gelasius was standing back a way, his arms crossed smugly.

"I don't need my father to stay here and keep me out of trouble." Eugenides crossed his arms as well, mirroring his father with stubbornness in the place of satisfaction.

"I've given him permission to use any means of force against you if you decide to throw him out again." Eddis paused for effect. "That includes beating you with a chair, strangling you with curtain cords, or locking you in your rooms."

"It sounds like you're trying to assassinate me, not help me."

"I'm being serious, Gen."

Eugenides opened his mouth to argue more, but closed it when a group of Eddisians approached them, led by Ornon. "The horses are ready, Majesty." He shot a look of barely disguised pity at his replacement ambassador.

"Thank you, Ornon." Eddis turned to Eugenides solemnly. "Take care, cousin. Don't take the fact that your father is staying here as a sign of little faith."

"I never thought that," the king said reluctantly, taking her hand formally. "We will send word if something happens."

"As will I." Breaking all protocol, Eddis pulled Eugenides into a tight hug. "Take care, Gen." She let him go and he dusted his sleeve off studiously, still holding up the act of being offended. Turning to her former Minister of War, Eddis smiled. "Make sure he doesn't send us all into war with the world."

"I'll try my best, Your Majesty," Gelasius replied, bowing his head. "If it comes to strangulation, I'll be sure to send official missive to you first for permission."

Eddis laughed lightly and noticed a small smile flicker across Eugenides' face. A small one, but it was a victory surrounded by these dark times. Eddis knew how to count her wins as she received them.

As Ornon offered a hand to help the queen mount her horse, Gelasius looked sideways at the king. "I have heard there would be a council today with your barons. I look forward to going."

The king snorted and muttered a curse under his breath, but his father just laughed.

"I will be sure to be there early, Your Majesty."


End file.
